Cincinnati Reds Press Clippings May 3, 2016 THIS DAY IN REDS HISTORY 2012-Homer Bailey participates in the first game in major league history in which both starting pitchers celebrate their birthdays. Bailey turning 26 and Chicago’s Ryan Dempster turning 35 MLB.COM Reds' big inning doesn't hold up vs. Giants By Chris Haft and Mark Sheldon / MLB.com | 1:24 AM ET CINCINNATI -- Sending 11 men to the plate in a six-run, six-hit bottom of the third inning, the Reds got the best of their former ace Johnny Cueto. But the Giants beat up a vulnerable bullpen for five runs in the top of the seventh to get the 9-6 win Monday at Great American Ball Park. Cincinnati held a 6-3 advantage when JC Ramirez replaced starter Brandon Finnegan to begin the seventh. Following the first out, San Francisco notched five consecutive hits -- including Brandon Belt's RBI single off Ramirez and a three-run homer by Brandon Crawford against Drew Hayes. Vin Mazzaro pitched two-thirds of an inning in relief for the victory. Cincinnati has dropped seven of its last eight games. The Reds were down by a 3-0 score when they hit for the cycle in their big inning with Tucker Barnhart's leadoff single starting the rally. Billy Hamilton legged for a one-out RBI double and Joey Votto's three-run homer to center field provided the go-ahead runs. Two batters later, Jay Bruce hit an RBI triple to the wall in center field. Scott Schebler's RBI single stretched the lead to three runs. Cueto stuck around and retired eight in a row following the Schebler hit, but gave up six earned runs and seven hits over his five innings with two walks and eight strikeouts. "You see what happens when he gets settled in," Hamilton said. "That's the kind of pitcher he is. Once he gets in that routine and starts rolling, he's a great. I've played behind him and I know how he pitches and everything. It was good to get going and get a few runs. Unfortunately it didn't turn out the way we wanted it to. That's baseball. You have to come back the next day and try it again." MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Slump, begone! It's an understatement to say Crawford reversed his fortunes with his three-run homer that punctuated the Giants' big seventh inning. He was hitting .203 (12-for-59) with four RBIs in an 18-game stretch and 1-for-18 (.056) with runners in scoring position when he connected. "It was nice to have a game where you actually get a hit with a guy in scoring position," Crawford said. "I've gotten a few RBIs through groundouts or sacrifice flies, but getting a hit in that situation's always a lot better." Hello, friend: Votto spent a lot of time playing with Cueto the previous eight seasons but facing him for the first time was no time for sentimentality. In the third inning with a 3-2 count and two men on, Votto crushed a 92 mph fastball to straightaway center field for a three-run homer, his third of the season. The ball traveled 418 feet, according to Statcast™, and left the bat at 104 mph. Osich handles load: Once again, Giants rookie left-hander Josh Osich excelled in relief. He finished the seventh inning by coaxing Votto's double-play grounder, then worked a perfect eighth. Osich, who was tied for the National League lead in appearances entering this game, has been in 15 of San Francisco's 27 contests. "He's getting his rhythm out there, his command," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "It looks like he's found himself and he's done an outstanding job. He's a big part of our setup situation." Finnegan's hamstring: Finnegan survived a rocky three-run second inning where the big hit was Cueto's two-run single through the right side of the infield. The lefty still completed a six-inning quality start with three earned runs, six hits, three walks and four strikeouts. But a sore left hamstring made it necessary for him to leave the game. "He would not have come out otherwise," Reds manager Bryan Price said. SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS When Ramirez surrendered runs in the seventh, it meant that Reds relievers tied the Major League record by allowing at least one run for the 20th consecutive game. They now share the modern record with the 2013 Rockies. "We have to get some guys on a roll," Price said. "It becomes a lot easier that way. Everyone starts to throw to their ability and it gets easier to slot guys in and you know who your mid-guys are. Right now, we're going to go freshest arm. We've had a lot of work in our bullpen and it's been hard finding a recipe to get through the ninth." WHAT'S NEXT Giants: San Francisco will aim for its second three-game winning streak of the season in Tuesday's 4:10 p.m. PT rematch against the Reds. The Giants also have a chance to climb two games above .500 for the first time since they were 7-5 on April 16. Right-hander Jeff Samardzija gets the start for the visitors. Reds: The series continues at 7:10 p.m. ET on Tuesday when the Reds hope to have shortstop Zack Cozart back in the starting lineup. Cozart, who was slowed by tendinitis in his surgically repaired right knee Sunday, missed Monday's game and is day to day. Jon Moscot, who is dealing with soreness in his non-throwing left shoulder, is still tentatively slated to start but the club has John Lamb on standby after it scratched his scheduled rehab start at Triple-A Louisville on Monday. Finnegan pushes to 6th despite sore hamstring Reds lefty turns in quality start, doesn't expect to miss next turn By Mark Sheldon / MLB.com | @m_sheldon | 12:00 AM ET CINCINNATI -- As starting pitchers have fallen victim -- one after the other -- to injuries on the Reds this season, Brandon Finnegan had seemingly been immune. Not only had Finnegan been comparatively durable, he had been mostly solid and able to go deeper in games. That's why it was initially curious during a 9-6 Reds loss to the Giants on Monday that manager Bryan Price lifted Finnegan after six innings and 90 pitches. Cincinnati had a 6-3 lead when Price went to the struggling bullpen and reliever JC Ramirez. It turns out there was a very good reason. Finnegan had developed a sore hamstring in the third inning on the left leg he needs to push off from when delivering a pitch. "We were actually a little bit more aggressive than we probably wanted to be simply because of our shortage of bullpen pieces for the night," Price said. "So he went out there and threw three more innings. "The current state of the health of our team, it was hard for me to think about pushing him beyond the sixth inning, so I didn't. Subsequently, things got a little bit sideways on us." For the 20th consecutive game, the Reds bullpen gave up at least one run as Ramirez and Drew Hayes combined for six runs allowed -- including five in the decisive top of the seventh. Finnegan turned in a quality start for a no-decision with six innings, three earned runs, six hits, three walks and four strikeouts. He allowed all three runs, along with two walks and a hit batter, in the second inning that included a two-run single by Johnny Cueto. "It was barking a little bit," said Finnegan, who has a 3.97 ERA after seven starts. "I couldn't really push off tonight. I stayed low in the zone all night, so it helped me out a little bit." Raisel Iglesias already went on the disabled list this week while Jon Moscot is iffy to start Tuesday because of a sore shoulder in his non-throwing left arm. Alfredo Simon missed one start with a sore throwing shoulder. Pitchers Homer Bailey and Anthony DeSclafani were shut down from rehab assignments due to setbacks. "We're having a tough time right now with our staff," Finnegan said. "Guys are having recurring injuries that are coming back up. Nobody can do anything about that. That's tough." Will Finnegan be the next to go on the DL or have to miss a start? "I'll be fine. Nothing serious at all," Finnegan said. "They checked it out and nothing bad. I've just got to take care of it and get treatment every day and I'll be fine. I'm not going to miss any starts." Price realized he took a calculated risk by letting Finnegan pitch while feeling soreness. "I had already done it for three innings and it was a gamble for him to be out there," Price said. "I don't think it's something we'll look at and go, 'Oh my goodness, he's going to be out.' But in the environment we're in, it's really hard to ask your players to do more than I've already asked them to do." Torn shoulder labrum puts Mesoraco on DL Reds catcher weighing possibility of season-ending surgery By Mark Sheldon / MLB.com | @m_sheldon | 12:13 AM ET CINCINNATI -- After he missed most of last season with a hip injury, Reds catcher Devin Mesoraco is now facing the specter of losing most of 2016, too.